Book-support



(No Model.) 2 Sheets-Sheet '1.

i. E. HEALEY.

BOOK SUPPORT.

No. 396,741. Patented Jan. 29, 1889'.

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mine-$668. Inventor 3,218 J orneyo.

N PETERS. PhMu-ULhcgrapher. Washington 0. c.

(No Model.) 2 Sheets-Sheet 2.

P. E. HEALEY.

' BOOK SUPPORT. 7 No. 396,741. Patented Jan. 29, 1889.

TEL- nasseswaflw W Z W' d h is Ji-arn 98.

UNITED STATES PATENT rricn.

FRANK E HEALEY, OF MORRISVILLE, VERMONT.

BOOK -SUPPORT.

SPECIFICATION forming part of LettersPatent No. 396,741, dated January 29, 1889.

Application filed April 5, 1888. Serial No. 269,747. (No model.)

To all whoop it may concern:

Be it known that l, FRANK E. llEALEY, of lrlorrisville, in the county ol. Lamoille and State of Vermont, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Book-Supports: and I do hereby declare the fol lowing to be a full, clear, and exact description of the same, reference being had to the accompanying drawings,forming a part of this specilication, and to the figures and letters of reference marked thereon.

"My invention relates particularly to improvements in desks designed for use in churches, counting houses, and elsewhere where large books are required to he sup ported and handled; and it has for its object to provide a desk so constructed that it will properly support and maintain in horizontal position both portions of a book when laid upon it and opened, and will so adapt itself to the varying bulk of the dil'ferent portions of said book as to rise automaticallyunder the lighter portion and d escend automatically under that portion which is heavier and thus not only present both exposed pages of the book in a substantially horizontal position most convenient for inspection, but also prevent straining of and injury to the cover of the book.

It has, further, for its object to provide means for regulating the extent of movement of the rising and falling supports of the desk, for bringing said supports to a state of equilibrium after use, and for locking said supports at any particular point of adjustment when desired, all as will be hereinafter fully described.

Referring to the acctnnpanying drawings, Figure 1 represents a perspective view of a desk constructed in accordance with my in vention. Fig. 2 is a longitudinal sectional view of the same. Fig. 3 is a perspective view showing the devices upon which the movable supports of the desk are carried and by which the simultaneous movements of the same are effected. Fig. -l. is a detailed view of the devices for limiting the extent of movement of the vertically-movable supports of the desk to correspoi'id to the thickness of the book to be supported. Fig. 5 is a detail view showing how one part of the desk may be utilized to support a ledger or other book of account, while the other serves as a rest for the arm in making entries in said book.

Similar letters of reference in the several figures indicate the same parts.

My desk consists, essentially, of a box or casing, A, two verticallyn1ovable supports, 13 B, and connecting mechanism arranged beneath said movable supports for causiuone of said movable supports to be automatically raised Said connecting mechanism is emnposed, preferably, of two curved or angular levers, O, pivoted centrally at l) and having connectingbars near their ends and four arms or levers, E, pivoted at their lower ends, as shown at F, and provided at or near their middles with laterally -pro 'j(; .cting pins or studs G, which enter longitudinal slots ll in the centrally-pivoted lovers 0, as shown in Fig.

The extremities of the lovers (1 and the upper ends of the arms or levers h are preferably provided with friction-rollers I, and upon these friction-rollers the two vertically-movable supports B 13 rest, shown in Fig. 2.

It will be seen that the arrangement of the parts is such that when the support B, for instance, is forced down, the ends of the levers C and the co-operating arms or levers E beneath it will be depressed, while the opposite end of said lever C and its corresponding pair of arms or levers E will be elevated, thus lifting or raising the support 1% a corresponding degree.

The practical operation of the invention is as follows: \Vhen a book is placed upon the support B, for instance, said support will descend, while support ll will rise; but if the book is opened, so as to rest partly upon one support and partly upon the other, the said supports will adjust themselves in accordance with. the distribution of weightthat is to say, if the heavier part of the book after the latter is opened continues to rest upon support B, that support will remain down, while support B will remain elevated but if the opening of the book transfers the greater weight to the support B, that support will descend and the other one will rise. Should the weight of the book happen to be dis tributed equally between the two supports, they would be'brought to a state of equilib rium and stand at the same level, as will be when the other of said supports is depressed.

readily understood. By this arrangement of self-adjusting supports for the book both covers of the book are properly supported and the exposed page on each support is presented in a substantially horizontal plane, while all wrenching and im n'operbeiulin of the back is avoided. In point of fact, the said autoniatically-acting supports deal with the book just as any careful reader of it wouldtl1at is to say, they support both covers at all times and do not permit it to be opened too wide, so as to impair the binding.

In order that no injury may be done to the back of the book through abrasion, I prefcrably concave the corners l) of the supports 13 B, as shown in Fig. 1.

As it is desirable that both supports I I3 should normally stand level, I by preference v apply to each of the cross-pieces G of the levers C a light spring, 3. These springs, while not strong enough to interfere with the prompt action. of the supports when a book is placed upon them, serve well to bring back said supports to a common level after the book or other object has been removed from them. i I

The throw or extent of movement of the supports B B may be regulated by means of set-screws T, or their equivalents, applied to the cross-bars O and adapted to impinge upon the bottom of the box or case A. This provision is desirable, since it enables the extent of movement of the supports to be fixed with reference to the thickness of the book designed to be used upon the desk. lVithout it the weight of one portion of a coinparatively thin book. would cause such a descent of one of the supports as to carry the cover bearing the lighter portion of said book far above a horizontal plane, and thus defeat one of the objects of the invention.

To enable the supports to be locked and secured in any desired position of adjustment, I provide a sct-screw, U, adapted to work through the box or case A and impinge upon one of the supports B B, or engage with a perforated strip of brass or other metal, V, or a rubber strip applied to said support, as shown in Fig. 1. This locking means may be applied to either one or both of the supports, as desired.

In Fig. 5Ihave shown the desk as arranged to give support to the hand and arm while writing in a ledger or other large accountbook. In this instance the left-hand support is made wider than the one at the right and a supplemental adjustable support, is provided for the empty cover of the book. By placing the ledger on this wider left-hand support and adjusting the said supports to the proper levels and securing them at said point of adjustment by the described loekin means great convenience in making entries in the book will result.

Small apertures 0 will be noticed in the several figures. These are for the purpose of permitting the free escape of air, which might otherwise become confined in the case and operate disadvantageously when the supports B B are shifted.

Having thus described my inventio11,wl1at I claim as new is 1. In a book-support, the combination, with the base, the movable supports, and the bent levers pivoted at the center to the base and si'ipportin g one side of the movable supports, of eo-operating arms or levers pivoted at one end on the base, supported at an intermediate point upon the bent levers, and serving to support the other side of the movable supports, substantially as described.

2. The combination, with the box or cas ing, the movable supports, and the centrallypivoted levers provided with slots and serving to support one side of the movable supports, of the co-operating pivoted levers or arms supporting the other side of the movable supports, being themselves supported by pins or studs entering said slots in the centrally pivoted levers, substantially as described.

The combination, with the movable supports and the centrally-pivoted levers sup porting one side of the movable supports, of the co-operating pivoted. levers or arms supported by the centrally-pivoted levers for supporting the opposite side of the movable supports, and the springs for returning both the centrally-pivoted levers and the co-operating levers or arms to normal position, substan tially as described.

i. In a book-support, the combination, with the centrally-pivoted levers carrying the movable supports free to be moved in either direction by the weight of the book, of the cooperating pivoted levers or arms supported by the centrally-pivoted levers, and the adjustable stops for limiting the extent of movement in either direction, substantially as described.

5. In. a book-support, the combination, with the levers pivoted at the center and a support carried by each end of the levers, each adapted to be moved down by the weight of the book and cause a corresponding elevation of the opposite support, of adjustable stops for limiting the extent of movement in either direction, whereby the support may be adjusted to accommodate books of different thicknesses, substantially as described.

6. The combination, with the movable supports, the centrally-pivoted levers supporting one side thereof, and the pivoted levers or arms supported by the centrally-pivoted levers supporting the other side, of the springs for returning the parts to normal position when moved in either direction, and adjustable stops for limiting the extent of such movement, substantially as described.

7. The combination, with two supports free to move in either direction and connecting mechanism by which one support is raised when the other is depressed, of springs for bringing said supports to equilibrium when the moving force is removed, and adjustable I the supports at any desired point of adj uststops for limiting the downward movement of ment, but allowing the supports free move- 10 said supports, substantially as described. ment when disengaged, substantially as de- S. In a book-support, the combination, with scribed. 5 the casing, the movable supports in the same, and connecting mechanism by which one is FRANK E. HEALEY. lVitnesses:

raised when the other is depressed, of a lock G. XV. CLARK, for rigidly connecting the casing and one of ORLO OADY. 

